Support for tube frames in axminster looms



June 9 w. w. ROBERTSON SUPPORT FOR TUBE FRAMES IN AXMINSTER LOOMS Filed Jan. 51, 1955 llrlrllllil .21131 June 8, 1937. w. w. ROBERTSON SUPPORT FOR TUBE FRAMES IN AXMINSTER LOOMS 3 Sheets-Sheet '2 Filed Jan. 51, 1935 s v J w Jupe 8, 1937. w. w. ROBERTSON 2,082,907

SUPPORT FOR TUBE FRAMES IN AXMINSTER LOOMS Filed Jan. 31. 1935 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 14 TOP V5 Y2 Patented June 8, 1937 SUPPORT non TUBE FRAMES 1N AXMINSTERLOOMS William W. Robertson, Worcester, Mass, assignor to Crompton & Knowles Loom Works, Worcester, Mass, a corporation of Massachusetts Application January 31 1935, Serial No. 4,360

' 12 Claims. (01. 139-9 This invention relates to improvements in supports forthe tube frames used in Axminster looms and it is the general object ofv the invention to provide a support which will brace the tube frame against rearward and downward bending during the wiping-in and pulling-off operaroll :the tube frame to wipe the tuft yarns into position, and then lift the frames so that the tuft yarns can be cut from the tube frames to form a row of tufts. In wide looms of this type the central portion of the tube frame is likely to bend rearwardly during the wipingin operation and to sag under its own weight during the pulling-off operation which immediatelyprecedes cutting. It is an important object of my pres ent invention to provide one or more arms or fingers which are so constructed as tomove with the transferrer arm and engage the tube frame so that the central portions thereof are held in substantial alignment with-the ends which are held by the clutches.

Center supports as heretofore constructed have usually been operated by a cam which is independent of the cam or other mechanism which manipulates the transferrer arms, and it is a matter-of practical difiiculty to cause the cams to give the central part and the ends of the tube frame the same character of motion throughout the time that the tube frame is takingpart in a tuft formingoperation. It is a further object of my present invention to provide center or intermediate braces which shall be locked'to the cross shaft which supports the transferrer arms, thereby requiring all parts of the tube frame to have the same kind of motions and keep the tube frame substantially straight throughout its tuft forming operation. By this construction I eliminate the cams heretofore used for the intermediate supports and thereby avoid the necessity for the close setting of these cams which has heretofore been necessary. As a result of this construction the control of the tube frame is considerably simplified since the transferrer cam mechanism moves not only the transferrer arms but also the intermediate braces.

It is a further object of my present invention to accomplish the aforesaid locking when the transferrer arms move downwardly. It is a further object of my present invention to control the motion of the center support so that it moves downwardly.relatively tothe path traversedby the tube frames as they move with their chains. 1 have found that the shape of the center brace, which is determined largely by adjacentmechanism, would be likely to interfere with tube frame motions unless someprovision were made to move the brace out of interfering position.

With these and other objects in View which will appear as the description proceeds, my invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter described and set forth in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, wherein a convenient embodiment of my invention is set forth,

Fig. 1 is an end elevation of a loom having my invention applied thereto, 1

Figs. 2 and 3 are transverse sections through parts of the structure shown in Fig. 1 on an an larged scale and showing the brace and associated parts in different positions,

Fig. l is a frontelevationon an enlarged scale taken in the direction of arrow 4, Fig. 2, parts being removed, and

Figs. 5 and 6 are vertical sections on lines 5-5 and 65 of Fig.4, respectively.

Referring more particularly to Fig. 1, I have shown an AXminster loom frame Ill having a bottom shaft II which carries the usual cams for operating the several mechanisms of the loom. Among these mechanisms is that for pulling over the tube frames successively to present them one at a time to transfer position. The pull-over shaft 12 is mounted on the bearing brackets l3 secured to the upper part of the loom frame and carries chain sprockets I4 for the transporting chains C, one of which is shown in Fig. ,1. A pairof feeding arms l5 and I6 are actuated by a lever ll deriving its force from the bottom shaft. By means of mechanism not shown but set forth more particularly in Ryon Patent No. 1,553,558 the rocking of the arms [5 and I6 may becaused to turn the sprocket l4 in either direction to cause the chain to travel first in one direction and then in the other, with the tube frame and its tuft yarns traversing a path designated at A, Fig. 1. p

The chain is provided with a series of tube frames T one of which is shown in Fig. 1. Each end of eachtube frame has an ear or hanger l8 which is attached to a cross bar. l9 which in approved constructions is tubular in cross section. The tube frame itself forms no part of my present invention and may be of the usual construction, such as shown in Patent No, 1,515,022.

The loom has transferrer arms 25 each of which is provided with clutches 2| which serve to en- 5 gage the ears l8 for the purpose of disconnecting a tube frame from the transporting chains. The arms 20 are secured to levers22 which move about substantially vertical axes 23 carried by supports 24 mounted on the transfer shaft 25, shown more particularly in section in Figs. 2 and 3. The shaft 25 may be rocked in the usual manner by a force controlled through rod 25 The apparatus for moving the shaft 25 of itself forms no part of my present invention and may be of the usual construction as in Skinner PatentNo. 233,290.

Referring again to Fig. 1,- front and back knives 30 and 3|, respectively, may be of the usual construction and the lay Lcarries a reed R which beats up the weft which is laid between the warp threads W. A comb 32 may be located immediately behind the cloth board 33 and caused to rise periodically by well-known mechanism indicated in Fig. 1. v

' The'matter thus far described operates in the -2 usual manner, the chain C presenting the tube frames one at 'a time "to the transferf'position indicatedin Fig. 1 and the transferrer arms moving first to unclutch a tube frame from the chains and then moving it down to cloth forming position, where the yarn tubes 34 are profjected'through the warp threads in the formation of pile tufts. The tube frame is then raised while the tufts are .'held in position and the knives cut the tuft in the tube frame, after which the latter are returned to the chain.

Asalready indicated it is an important object of my present invention to provide a brace for the intermediate portion of the tube frame which will serve to prevent the latter not only from 7 4,0 sagging under the action of gravity but also from bending rearwardly'because of frictional contact between the tuft'tube's and any of the structure including the binder threads which they may contact in .the wiping-in operation. It is tobe 45 understood thatwhilel have shown a form of comb at.32 in Fig. 1, yet I am not limited to a "loom equipped with such mechanism and my invention is equally applicable with such structures as are shown in patent to Dacey and Rob- 5 ertson No. 1,958,192 which employ guide plates between which the tuft tubes pass. In the latter patent the rearward'bending of the tube frame is'more pronounced than isthe case with the usual Axminster loom employing a comb but there is a certain amount of rearward bending .of the tube frame in all types of Axminster looms. v In carryingmy invention into effect I may provide severalintermediate braces, but I have shown herein but one. A carrier bracket 40 is gosecured to the shaft as by a bolt or screw 4!,

cated'in Fig. 1 and terminates in a lower forward concave bracing surface 49 which is movable to a positionincontact with they bar l9 andconcentric with the stud 39. on the transfer arm around which the frame rocks during the wiping- 75 n nd. pul ing-off operations.

The upper surface of the lever 43 is provided with a cam or inclined face 50 which extends upwardly and forwardly and is held by the counter-weight 45 against a roll 5| on a bracket 52 secured to the loom structure between the transfer arms. The arm 43 also has a laterally projecting locking lug" 53 for a purpose to be described, see Fig. 4.

The support carries also a lower stud 50 to which is pivoted a lock lever 5|, see Fig. 5, having a depending finger 62 to which is attached a spring 63 connected to an eye bolt 64 tapped into the shaft 25. The purpose of the spring 63 is to move the lock lever toward lug 53. The upper end of this lever has a locking jaw 65 the upper limit of which may be determined by an adjusting screw 65 and the lower part of which may be defined by a shelf 51. A roll 68' on stud 69 carried by the lock lever is positioned for coaction with a cam 10 carried by plate ll bolted to fixed structure such as a part of the bracket 52. The outline of the cam is set forth in Fig. 6,'where it Will be seen that the upper part thereof inclines downwardly and forwardly as at 72 and then extends forwardly therefore turned to its extreme'right position.

Center 42 is therefore at its extreme distance from roll 5| and the cam face 50 is depressed so that the brace 41 lies below the line A, Fig. 1, or as in full lines in Fig. 2. Furthermore, stud 58 is in its highest position and roll 68 is in its extreme right position to'hold the locking jaw 65 away from lug 53. When the transferrer arms are to be lowered the shaft 25 is rocked in a left hand direction from that viewed in Fig. 2 and there results a movement of stud 42 to the left and a corresponding lowering of stud 60. As the stud 42 moves toward the roll 5| the counterweight becomes effective through coaction with the inclined surface to cause a relative upward movement of the brace, causing the latter ultimately to reach the position indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 2. This is accompanied by an angular movement on the part of I lever 45 relatively to the shaft 25 in a clockwise direction and raises the locking lug 53 toward jaw 65. After engagement of the brace with the tube frame, locking can be effected, since the brace is now in the position it should retain relatively to the tube frame during the tuft forming operation. I

Relative movement of the brace, lever 43, shaft 25 and arms 25 is temporarily prevented by contact of the brace with the tube frame, 'and lug 53 is therefore fixed relatively to stud 60. Further down motion of the latter results in additional movement of the roll 68 to the left, Fig. 2, and the locking jaw ultimately moves around lug 53 to lock the transfer arms, shaft'25 and brace. The locking occurs under the conditions existing when the counter-weight 45 is able to overcome the sagging of the tube frame, and this is determined by the position of the weight along arm 44. During the wiping-in and rolling movements of the tube frame the concave surface 49 remains in bracing relation with respect to the tube frame.

Upon return movement of the tube frame the operations occur in the reverse order from that already described, the roll 68 being moved to the right as the transferrer arms rise to take the looking jaw away from the lug 53 and roll 5| moving up the incline 50 to depress the brace and move the same out of the path of arcuate movement of the tube frame next to be in action or just returning to the tube frame, depending upon the direction of rotation of the chain C.

From the foregoing it will be seen that I have provided a center brace for a tube frame which preferably remains in supporting relation with respect to the tube frame during the several movements of the latter incident to the formation of a pile tuft and that means are provided for locking the brace to the tube frame so that the ends and center of the tube frame are maintained in alignment. It will also be seen that the brace is acted upon to move away from the path traversed by the tube frames as they are presented to or taken from transfer position by the transporting chains. Ordinarily the lug 53 will fit snugly in the locking jaw, this condition being maintained by the setting of screw 66. If, however, there should be any slackness or lost motion between the lug and the jaw the counterweight 45 will act to hold the lug normally against the screw so that the upward stress exerted by the brace on the tube frame will be the same as that which existed when the parts were locked.

Having thus described my invention it will be seen that changes and modifications may be made therein by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention and I do not wish to be limited to the details herein disclosed, but what I claim is:

1. In an Axminster loom operating with tube frames extending between and supported by transporting chains, a shaft extending across the loom, a transferrer lever moving with each end of the shaft, said levers to move the tube frame from the transporting chains toward the fabric being woven and support said tube frame during its wiping-in movements, an intermediate support for the tube frame pivotally mounted with respect to and supported by the shaft to engage the tube frame at a point beween the ends thereof, and means to lock the support with respect to the shaft and transferrer arms to cause said support to move angularly with the shaft and arms and support the tube frame during the wiping-in movements thereof, the means to lock requiring the transferring arms and brace to have substantially the same character of motion during the wiping-in movements of the tube frame.

2. In an Axminster loom operating with tube frames extending between and supported by transporting chains, a shaft extending across the loom, a transferrer lever supported by each end of the shaft, said levers to move the tube frame from the transporting chains toward the fabric being woven and support said tube frame during its wiping-in movements, an intermediate support for the tube frame to engage the latter at a point between the ends thereof, said support pivotally mounted with respect to the shaft, and means to lock the support with respect to the shaft and transferrer arms to cause said support to move angularly with the shaft and arms to support the tube frame during the wiping-in movements thereof, said means rendered effective to look by downward movement of the transferrer arms when the latter move the tube frame downwardly.

3. In an Axminster loom operating with tube frames extending between and supported by transporting chains, a cross shaft movable during the wiping-in operation of the tube frame from a given angular position and returnable to said angular position upon completion of the wiping-in operation, transferrer arms moving with the shaftto move a tube frame from the transporting chains toward the fabric being woven andto support said frame during the wiping-in movements thereof, a brace for the intermediate portion of the tube frame supported by and movable relatively to the shaft and normally below the tube frame when said shaft is in said given position,*means effective as the cross shaft moves fromsaid given position to cause the brace to approach and engage the intermediate portion of the tube frame during downwardmovement of the transferrer arms, and means to lock the brace relatively to the shaft to cause said brace and transferrer arms to move together during the wiping-in operation of the tube frame, said means to lock effective to unlock the brace and shaft as the latter returns to said given position.

4. In an Axminster loom operating with tube frames extending between and supported by transporting chains, a *cross shaft extending across the loom and movable angularly from a given position and returnable to said given position to complete the wiping-in operation of the tube frame, transferrer "arms moving with the cross shaft to move the tube frame from the transporting chains toward the fabric and support thesaid tube frame during the wiping-in movements thereof, an intermediate support for the tube frame supported by the cross shaft, means to hold said support spaced from the tube frame when the shaft is in said given position and effective to cause said support to approach and engage the tube frame during movement of the shaft away'from said given position, and a lock to hold the support in fixed position relatively to the shaft and transferrer arms while in engagement with the tube frame, said lock effective to unlock the support as the shaft returns to its given position, the first named means thereupon effective to move the support in a direction away from the tube frame.

5. In an Axminster loom operating with a series of tube frames movable along a given path to a transfer position, a cross shaft extending across the loom having an angular movement toward and from a given position, transferrer arms moving with the shaft to transport the tube frame in transfer position from the chain toward cloth forming position and to support the tube frame during the wiping-in movements of the latter, an intermediate support carried by the shaft, positioning means effective to hold said support normally in a position away from said path and effective to cause movement of said support toward the path and into engagement with an intermediate part of the tube frame as the latter moves toward the cloth, means to thereafter lock the support relatively to the shaft and transferrer arms during the wiping-in movements of the tube frame, said positioning means effective upon return movement of the shaft to said given position to move the support away from said path.

6. In an Axminster loom, a tube frame, transfer means to move the tube frame to cloth forming position, an intermediate brace movable toward the tube frame, connections between the transfer means and brace, and means to lock the brace and transfer means to the connections during the time that the tube frame is moved to cloth Cir forming position and before the tube frame reaches cloth forming position.

'7. In an Axminster loom operating with a tube frame, a transfer shaft and tube frame transferrer arms therefor, a lever pivotally supported with respect to the shaft, an intermediate tube frame brace carried by the lever, counter-weighting means acting on the lever to cause the latter to turn in a direction to move the brace. toward the tube frame, the amount of supporting of said brace relatively to the tube frame depending upon the counter-weighting means, and means to-cause the lever and shaft to move as a unit when the tube frame is near cloth forming position and to preserve the supporting force exerted by the counter-weighted means throughout the time that the brace is in supporting relation with respect to the tube frame.

8. In an Axminster loom operating with a tube frame, a transfer shaft and tube frame transferrer arms therefor, an intermediatetube frame brace pivotally mounted with respect to and moving with the shaft, a lock member pivotally mounted with respect to and moving with the shaft, means on the lock member defining a looking jaw, an adjustable element to vary the size of the jaw, a part moving with the brace to enter the jaw, and means to cause the jaw and brace to have interlocking relation as the shaft moves angularly to present the tube frame to cloth forming position. 1

9. In an Axminster loom operating with a tube frame, a transfer shaft and tube frame transferrer arms therefor, a support fastened to the shaft intermediate the transferrer arms, an intermediate tube frame brace pivotally mounted to the support at one point, a lock for the brace pivotally mounted to the support at another point, and means operative through angular movement of the shaft and support to cause the brace and lock to have interlocking relation with respect to each other and cause the brace to move with the transferrer arms when in supporting relation with respect to the tube frame.

10. In an Axminster loom'operating with a tube frame, a transfer shaft and tubeframe transferrer arms therefor, an intermediate brace .for the tube framemovably mounted with respect to and moving angularly with the shaft, a lock member movable relatively to and angularly with the shaft, two cooperating means one moving with the brace and one moving with the lock movable into locking relation with respect to each other by angular movement of the shaft to lock the brace to the shaft and in fixed angular position relatively to-the transferrer arms while said brace is in supporting relation with respect to the tube frame, one of said means being of variable size to be accommodated to the size of the other means.

11. In an Axminster loom operating with a tube frame, a shaft, tube frame support means on the shaft effective by angular movement of the shaft to move the tube frame to cloth forming position, an intermediate brace for the tube frame,'a lock for the brace, and. means rendered effective by angular movement of the shaft to cause the lock to lock the brace relatively to the shaft when the latter is in supporting relation with respect to the tube frame. Y

12, In an Axminster loom operating with a tube frame, a transfer shaft and tube frame transfer arms therefor, an intermediate brace for the tube frame, two members movably mounted on and relatively to the shaft, interlocking means carried partly on each member, one member supporting said brace, means dependent upon angular move ment of said shaft to move said one member and cause the brace supported thereby to move into supporting relation with respect to said tube frame when said shaft moves angularly in one direction, and control means for the other member rendered operative by angular motion of the shaft to move said other member in a direction to cause the interlocking means to lock the two members together when the brace is in supporting relation with respect to the tube frame.

WILLIAM w. ROBERTSON. 

